1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a positional information management system in a hotel, whereby, in hotels or various facilities that are provided in hotels, it is possible to ascertain and manage the location of a user.
2. Related Background Art
Technology involving the use of magnetic cards or IC cards in hotels and related facilities has previously been proposed. For example, a system has been proposed in which a card key is employed instead of a mechanical key as the key of a guest room and a system has been proposed in which settlement of charges for use is performed using a card. It has also been proposed to simplify management of customers, guest rooms, facilities or office work by giving a non-contact IC card a booking function for facilities of various types and/or a function of service point management. Such management of hotel business or related facilities is proposed in for example Laid-open Japanese Patent Application No. 2000-357272.
In the conventional system, individual processes such as for example opening/closing of locks, settlement of charges for use, booking, or service point management are managed in management of for example customers, guest rooms, facilities or offices. In the conventional system, information regarding the movement of users within hotels and the various facilities is not acquired. In the conventional system, information regarding the user's utilization of the various facilities provided by hotels is not acquired.
In order to increase the efficiency of utilization of hotels and the various facilities thereof, to increase customers' convenience, and to improve security of hotels and the various facilities thereof, it is necessary to know how users are moving within the hotel and the facilities.
In conventional systems, since management is merely performed treating each process as a unit, there is the problem that even if improvement in efficiency of the individual processes is sought, it is not possible to perform integrated management including for example the history of movement of users in the hotel or related facilities as a whole.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to solve the problems described above and to ascertain positional information of users in a hotel or the various facilities provided by a hotel.